Franchise Blog

You Don’t Have to Be Middle Aged to Start an I Love Juice Bar

I Love Juice Bar franchise ownership doesn’t have to wait until you’re retired or the kids are out of the house. Increasingly, millennials and gen Xers are finding success serving their communities with their Juice Bars and expanding their businesses quickly.

“Within the last year, some of our greatest franchise growth and expansion has come from our owners who are in their 30s and 40s,” says John Hunt, CEO and co-founder of I Love Juice Bar franchise. “This is a terrific business to begin and grow throughout middle adulthood into your 50s, 60s and beyond.”

I Love Juice Bar ownership is a great fit for millennials and gen Xers

Millennial buyers — individuals in their mid-20s to mid-30s — now comprise more than 33% of the franchise buying population, which makes sense, considering they are described as the most entrepreneurial generation since the baby boomers came home from WWII. Millennials are generally attracted to our outstanding product that’s helping others lead healthier lives. They love the authenticity of the brand — its high quality, fresh, natural product ingredients; its other-centered focus in customer service; its passion for good health and nutrition; and the unpretentious branding that creates a welcoming “vibe,” which makes customers feel at home in their community stores. For millennials who value relevancy and transparency as they make buying decisions, I Love Juice Bar delivers.

“You’re giving them really good food,” says multi-unit owner Scott Tashie in Memphis, Tennessee. “It’s a satisfying feeling to know that someone is coming into your place because they’re sick or they’re not feeling great. They’re coming in there because they want something that’s gonna make them feel better that’s not a pill and it’s not a cheeseburger. It’s a really fresh, healthy beverage or food item that we offer, and I find that satisfying.”

While not as numerous as either millennials or baby boomers, gen Xers (individuals now in their mid-30s to mid-50s) certainly have buying power. This sometimes forgotten generation is only 25% of the population but has 31% of the nation’s income. Gen Xers are more risk averse than millennials, more affluent and investigate an opportunity thoroughly before deciding to buy in.

They are also far more sentimental than their younger counterparts, and especially nostalgic about their youth. Research calls gen X the greatest entrepreneurial generation and says that as they are now in midlife, they are seeking a greater degree of work-life balance. I Love Juice Bar appeals to this type of franchise buyer, many of whom have fled the grind of corporate life in search of more meaningful, less stressful work for the next couple of decades until retirement. I Love Juice Bar offers both the entrepreneurial challenge and sentimental element, as gen X franchise owners become successful business members of their local communities.

Texas multi-unit franchise owner John Zuffinetti is a former managing partner with the Seasons 52 restaurant group. He never has plans to return to the corporate restaurant environment. John says, “Every time I go back to my old restaurant, I smile with joy and I cringe for them that they’re still there. Because they don’t know how great it is, and it does take that leap of faith for you. I left a really, really great restaurant, and I was getting paid great money with great benefits, and so that was super scary to leave. But I wouldn’t change it for the world.”

Learn more about starting a Juice Bar franchise

Now is a great time to bring I Love Juice Bar to your community. Startup costs range from $170,000 to just over $300,000. You can learn more about how we started, why our mission is important to us and how our business model is structured by checking out our research pages.